Textile machinery spool core



Nov. 7, 1933. E. GjcRo'oKs 1,934,169

TExTILEMARY-'IPL 'CORE Filed April 5, 1932 2 Sheets-Sheet l /NYENTOR WITNESS HTTOR/VEY NOV. 7, E, G CROKS 1,934,169

TEXTILE MACHINERY SPOOL CORE Filed April 5. 1932 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 zL/Q, Il.

INVENT? gar/" Cyrano/(TS,

w, M555 SY 1 Y HTTOHNEY movement relat-ive thereto, 'and 'constrained Patented Nov. 7, 1933 UNITED STATES i y 1,934,169 PATENT OFFICE'.

- 1,934,169 TEXTILE MACHNERY SPOOL CORE Earl G. Crooks, Elmira, N. Y., assigner to Che-- mung Engineering' Corporation', Elmira,

a corporation of New York Application April 5, 1932.

serial No. 603,272

4 claims. (o1. 242-2118) a suitable spool to torni an operative unit wherek in the spool will remain relatively immovable with respect to the core through the various operations incident to its use in conjunction therewith although readily detachable therefrom when desired. In consequence, through the me dium of my invention it is 'feasible to provide the various machines in a given establishment with my improved cores and to utilize throughout the plant but a single type of thread carrying spool adapted for assembly on any oi them, thus eliminating the expense, coniusion and annoyance incident to the present practice oi using different types of spools and different cores or other supporting means therefor in various operations and in connection with diierent machines.

The principal object of invention, therefore, is the provision of an improved core so designed and constructed with a suitable spool, the latter is firmly though removably seated on the core, prevented from accidental longitudinal separation therefrom or to rotate unitarily with the core.

A further object of the invention is vide a core of this character factured at a relatively low cost, which is not likely to become damaged or broken' under the conditions of use to which it is necessarily subjected, and which in one of its iorzns is adapted to seat on a spindle such as is customarily provided in certain textile machines for holding the thread carrying spools.

A still further object oi my invention the provision of a core and spindle assembly comprising, in o' era-tive coi -ation and association, a core embodying the improvements herein disclosed and a supporting spindle adapted for disposition in a textile or other nia-chine to ford permanent support the core through the medium of antifriction beari 'the ycore being desirably provided with driving means to litate its rotation about the spin when i thus providinga unitary ass readily be substituted for the ordinary spool supporting spindle and spindle driving means heretofore customarily used in numerous sinds of textile machinery with resultant advantages to that when assembled to proivhich can be manuwhich reference is hereinafter more particularly made. f

Additional objects, advantages-and. novel features of design, construction and `arrangement comprehended by the present invention are hereinafter more particularly pointed out or will be apparent to those skilled in the art from the following description of certain embodiments thereof as illustrated in the drawings forming a part` hereof to whichrreference willnow be made.

in the said drawings, Fig.I l is a central axial longitudinal section of one type of core con` structed in accordance with my invention with a spool in operatively assembled relation thereon, while Figs. 2 and 3 are respectively end elevations of theassembly shown in Fig. l. Fig. 4 is a transverse section on the plane 4 4 in Fig. l of the said spool with the core removed, and Fig. 5 is a central longitudinal section thereof on the plane 5 5 in Fig. 4. Fig. 6 is an elevationvof the core removed from the spool; Fig. 7 is a front end elevation thereof; Fig. 8 is a transverse section on the plane 8 8 in Fig.` 6, and Figs. 9 and lo are respectively perspective detail views showl ing certain of the parts ,comprised in the core as they appear prior to assembly. Fig. 1l is an elevation of the core and spindle assembly to which reference has been made, the position ofthe spool when assembled on the core being indicated in dotted lines; Fig. 12 is an enlarged central longitudinal section with certain parts shown in elevation of the core and spindle assembly shown in Fig. 1l, While Figs. V13 and 14 are respectively end elevations thereof with certainl parts in Fig.. 14 fragmentarily broken away. The Asame characters of 'A reference are used to designate corresponding parts throughout the several figures, and the directions in which certain of the sectional `views are taken' are indicated by arrows.

My improved core is designed primarily .for

use in connection witha spool S of the character- 'plastic glass so as to cause the latter to properly conform to the mold cavity. The presence of this relatively large axial bore thus serves, among other things tcstructurally diiierentiate the spool from those in. common use which comprise an axial bore of relatively small diameter, sometimes provided with a metal bushing or liner, to receive the spindle upon which the` spool is supported when in use'. Under practical conditions of manufacture, it has been found ldifficult to eliminate minor variations in diameter and taper the bores sol of these molded glass spools, and the core of the present invention istherefore designed, among other things, to support and suitably center the spools when assembled therewith irrespective of such variations and, in turn, to provide satisfactory means for receiving the spindle or other part on which the core is frequently operatively mounted.

More particularly, the spool comprises a body 1, which is usually exteriorly cylindrical, through which extends the axial bore 2 to which reference has just been made and adjacent the ends of which are anges 3, 3 which assist in retaining the thread on thebody, the former being disposed at what may, for convenience,be termed the base of the spool and the latter at its opposite end. The outer face of the flange 3 may be provided with ,an annular offset 4 surrounding the adjacent end of the bore 2 and chamfered out or countersunk at its junction therewith to provide an annular recess 5 for a purpose tovbe hereinafter described; this recess is concentric with the axis of the spool and may be readily and accurately moldedtherein during its process of manufacture. The bore 2 is preferably inwardly longitudinally tapered or slightlyconical from the base of the spool toward its other end, and for a considerable distance beyond the base is of generally circular cross section. .Toward the end remote from the base, however, the bore is made of substantially polygonal cross section by providing it, as best shown in. Fig. 4, with a be readily formed during the process of molding the spool by correspondingly shaping the end of the plunger which produces the bore.

Beyond the area or zone containing the lands and the grooves, the interior of the bore is preferably ground to produce an area or zone ,9 of

truly circular cross section preferably slightly tapered outwardly from its point of minimum diameter at its junction with the major and unground portion of the bore, and is 'outwardly beveled or flared as at 10 from the extremity of this zone to the end face of the spool, this bevel being conveniently formed in the molding operation as it does not have to be accurate. For the reasons heretofore mentioned, some variations in taper. and diameter will ordinarily occur in the `bores of a series of spools produced in the same mold, but of course all of the Zones'9 which are ground after the molding operation is completed may be made of the same size throughout the series. v

Cores constructed in accordance with the present invention are adapted for operative assembly with a spool of the character of that just described, and I .shall first refer to the particular embodiment of such a core shown in Figs. l and 6. This core C comprises a hollowcylindrical body l5 formed of steel or other suitable metal of considerably less diameter than the bore of the spool and of slightly greater length than the latter. Adjacent its lower or right hand end when viewed as in Fig. 6, the body is provided with an integral peripheral flange 16 to the outer face of which is suitably secured, as by welding, brazing or the like, a baseplate 17 adapted for reception in the recess 5. This plate ispreferably rounded on its ends to conform with the recess and flattened on its sides as best shown in Figs. 3 and 7 or may be made circular and perforated at intervals so that when the plate is seated in the recess a circulation of air can take place through the bore of the spool through the openings formed where the plate is cut away or through the perfor-ations. However, the particular conformation of the plate is a matter of choice so long as parts of its margin are effective to seat snugly' in the recess to center the adjacent end of the core in the spool; moreover, in some constructions the plate and the flange 16 may both be made integral with the body l5 or the plate may be provided with a boss seating on and secured to the latter and the flange thus omitted.

As stated, thecore body is hollow to provide a bore 18 for the reception of an ordinary textile machine spindle Whenit is desired to mount the core thereon; this bore may be of constant diameter throughout or enlarged midway of its ends as shown so as to reduce the friction belongitudinal separation of the parts, said means i in their preferred embodiment ,as showncomprising a flange hereinafter more particularly described and a plurality of symmetrically, circumferentially spaced generally longitudinally extending resilient elements 20 formed of spring L steel or like suitable material and xedly secured to the core body. As best shown in Fig. 10, each of these resilient elements comprises a slightlyv transversely curved body 21 and a toe 22 extending therefrom and having its sides slightly converging, the toe being desirably bent slightly upwardly or outwardly from the body and having its extremity still further outwardly bent to form a detent 22 preferably disposed at an angle substantially conforming to the outward inclination of the beveled zone 10 of the spool; as-'the body 21 is preferably slightly wider than the toe at its point of junction therewith, small shoulders 24 are provided on eachvside or" the latter. It will thus be noted that the resilient elements just described are devoid of the heel portions comprised in the corresponding elements disclosed in my said application Serial No. 570,830, but are otherwise generally similar thereto.

Preferably, the number of elements provided is equal to one-half the number of lands7 in the spool, although a larger or smaller number thereof with relation to the number of the lands may be utilized if desired; thus, when six lands are provided in the spool, three of the elements may l desirably be utilized. The elements are spaced about and secured to a peripheral circumferential boss 25 formed integral with the core body, its width, measured axially of the latter, approximating in length the bodies 21 of the resilient l-.-,Ls

elements, so that after the latter are arranged on the boss in symmetrically circumferentially spaced relation, they can be secured in place through the medium of a cylindrical ferrule 26 which is then seated over and constricted about the bodies of the elements and the boss by bending its inner end down over the edges of the latter by means of a suitable crimping machine or in any other convenient way, the ferrule being preferably provided at its forward end with anl v core body which is preferably provided with an integral peripheral ridge 28 in alignment with the free ends of the elements and of such height as to prevent the latter from being accidentally pressed inwardly beyond their elastic limit and s thus permanently bent out of shape.

It will be understood, however, that while I prefer to secure the resilient elements to the core body in the manner to which reference has just been made since it affords a cheap, practical and efficient way of eiiecting the desired result, they may be secured in place by any other suitable means if desired so long as the said means, whatever be the specic character thereof, are effective to holdthe elements to the body in such way that their toes are free to yield slightly inwardly and then spring back to normal position when and as required.-

Mention has been made of the means provided for preventing relative rotation between the core and the spool when assembled, said means, in accordance with the present invention, comprising a iiange 33 desirably integral with the core and disposed adjacent the boss and thus correspondingly adjacent the rear ends of the bodies frange isA desirably of triangular shape with rounded corners adapted to enter the grooves 8 between the lands 7 in the spool and thus posil tively prevent any relative rotation between it and the core. When a triangular flange is provided, the corners will thus enter every other groove, assuming the spool is provided with six lands, but of course the flange may be made of any shape other than triangular if preferred and its points or corners arranged to enter all of the grooves or any fewer number thereof, though a generally triangular flange with its corners disposed symmetrically between the elements 20 will be usually found most satisfactory in practice.

It will now be apparent that a spool and core constructed substantially as described may be readily assembled by pushing the core endwise into the bore of the spool or slipping the latter endwise over the core when the resilient elements are in substantial alignment with `the grooves 3 between the lands 7 until the flange 16 is seated in the recess 5, the position of thel resilient elements with respect to the body of the core being so calculated that when the core is fully introduced, the detente 22 will extend slightly over the beveled zone 10 of the spool'and thus yieldingly loci; the core in the spool against relative longitudinal movement in a direction opposite to that in which it was inserted, while the plate 17 'li of course prevents longitudinal movement ina like direction. Additionally, the engagement `of the toes of the resilient elements over the corner formed at the junction of the ground zone 9 and the beveled Zone 10 of the spoolserves to properly center the adjacent end of the latter on the core and thereafter maintain a substantially concentric relation of the parts, while the points of the flange 3G through their engagement in the grooves 8 positively resist relative rotation of the core and the spool and thus insure unitary rotation of the elements which are thereto secured. Thisv ofthe partsv at all times'. On the other hand, it will be equally .apparent that the core andthe spool may be as readily separated'by pushingv on the end ofthe core opposite the plate 17 While holding the. spool stationary, orv byy holding the core stationary and pullingon the spool, with sunicient force to cause the detents 22' of the resilient elements to spring inwardly over the corner at the junction of the Zones 9 and 10 and thence follow the wall of the spool bore as the core is moved out of it. '-Moreover, as the rear ends of the lands 7 are preferably rounded as shown, the groove lying'between each pair of` lands is in effect provided with an inwardly tapering mouth which serves to guide the forward ends of the elements 20 when the core is being inserted, thus substantially automatically bringing the elements into properly aligned position with respect to the grooves and facilitating assembly of the parts, the detents `22 of the elements 20 snapping into place overfthe corner of the junction of the zones 9 and 10 just before the plate 17 is fully entered in the recess 5 and thus assisting 'to pull the latter longitudinally to its seat therein.

While as will be readily appreciated, by those skilled in the art, the cores C of `my invention may be mounted in any suitable kway in connection with different machines adapted to drive them positively or to permit them to run idle, so that when the spools are assembled thereon the thread may be either wound upon the spools or drawn oir therefrom, a corey of this general character with certain modiications particularly lends itself to permanent operative assembly with a supportingspindle about which the core isdesigned to revolve, so that the spindle may be either permanently or removably disposed in a suitable textile machine .and the core then driven or permitted to run free on the spindle in accordance with -the particular operative requirements present. Such core and spindle assembly in its pre- -ferred embodiment I have shown in Figs. 11 to .tion substantiallyv similar to those already described sothat no extended reference thereto is required. I-Iowever',` the core'body is extended beyond the flange 16to form an integral'barrel 32 whichwis'surrounded by a `sleeve 33 of cork or other somewhat resilient frictional material adapted for engagement by a driving roll when it is desired to drive the core. This sleeve 33 is disposed between two flat annular rings 34, 35, the former resting against theiiiange ito which it is preferablyybrazed or welded similarly to the base plate, 17 `and the latterbeing removably se cured near the extremity of the barrel in any suitable way, .a preferred means for the purpose comprising a split ring 35 engageable in a peripheral groove 37 formed in the surface of the barrel and so. positioned that after the sleeve 32'is slipped into place and the ring 35 seated over the end of'Mg the barrel and against the end of the sleeve, it

is necessary to force this ring toward the other ring 34 with a considerable amount of pressure before the split ring can bev aligned with and seated in its groove, whereby the sleeve 33 is com- 145 pressed longitudinally and expanded radially and caused to hug the barrel very snugly, sothat it is prevented from relative rotation with respect thereto under any normal conditions of operation.

As the sleeve gradually wears when in use, it can be readilyremoved and replaced with anew one whenever required by prying. outthe spring ring and taking off thering 35. j

The `extremity of the barrel 32 is countersunk to receive-the outer race of a small ball or other antifriction bearing, the inner race 41 of which is snugly seated on the spindle 42 which extends entirely through the bore in the core. The outer race 40 is pressed into the countersink or socket inthe barrel so as to be incapable of rotation therein and, if desired,.may be4 knurled on its surface to enhance the frictional engagement between it vand the socketk Wall, while the inner raceis prevented from longitudinal movement on the spindle in any convenient way, desirably, by apair of split spring rings 43, 44 respectively engaging in shallow grooves formed on the spindle on opposite sides of the race, .the balls or other antifriction elements 45 being disposed between the races in the usual way. Thus, by removing the outer spring ring 43, the spindle can be driven out of the inner race if desired, or by driving on the opposite end ofthe spindle the Whole bearing rule 26 employed to retain the resilient elements in position are made Wide enough so that when bent down they will overlap the outer race and assist in retaining it in the socket.

It will be readily apparent that in the core and spindle assembly just described, the core is capable of rotation about the spindle with a minimum amount of friction and that after a spool is assembled on the core the ends of the spindle mayl Vbe removably supported in the brackets B or equivalent parts of a textile machine or the like as shown in Fig. 1l, so that the spool and core Ias a `unit can be rotated on the spindle by a driving roll or belt applied to the sleeve 33 when thread being Wound upon the spool or can turn very freely on .the spindle when .the thread is being drawn 01T the spool. Consequently, in many classes of textile machinery, these spool and core assemblies of my invention-.may be substituted in place of the spindles commonlyrin use so as to form in effect a component part of the textile ma-v chine itself, and the spools, 'either full of thread or devoid thereof, disposed on and removed from the cores when and as required for any particular manufacturing operation. Thepresence of the antifriction.bearings in the core and spindle assembly materially reduces the power required to drive a given number of the 'cores and spools, while the life of the parts is thereby prolonged, liability of thread breakage is reduced, contamination of the threadby lubricant is avoided, and

"the cores and spools are caused to run very smoothly and with little or no' tendency to jump and get outof alignment.

While the `cores of the present invention are particularly adapted for use in glass spools of the character of those to which reference'has been made, they may be used With equal facility in connection With spools of material other 'than glass if desired, While'as the spools and cores are interchangeable, standardization on a single type of spool and core in any given establishment f is rendered possible as any spool under such circumstances can be placed on any particular core and removed therefrom in a minimum of time.

While I have herein described certain forms of my inventionin considerable detail, I do not thereby desire or intend to limit or conne myself to any specific embodiments of the principles thereof or to any precise details of design, construction and arrangement of the various parts as long as they are Within the spirit and scope of the invention as dened in the appended claims. l

` Having thus described my invention, I claim and desire to protect by Letters Patent of the United States:

1. A core adapted to aiford operative support toa spool, comprising a body, means adjacent one end thereof for engagement with an end of the spool, a plurality of resilient elements arranged in circumferentially spaced relation about the body, each having an end normally out of ycontact-therewith adapted to yieldingly engage the spool adjacent its other end, and means carried by the Vbody and independent of said elements adapted 4by engagement with the Wall of the spool bore to positively prevent rotation of the core relatively thereto when it is assembled therein.

2. A core adapted to afford operative support to a spool, comprising a body, a base plate adjacent'one end of the body adapted to engage an end of the spool, a plurality of circumferentially spaced resilient elements adjacent the other endor" the body respectively adapted to engage the spool adjacent its other end to resist axial movement of the core in the spool when assembled therein, and a flange carried by and projecting outwardly from the 4body adapted to engagethe wall of the spool bore to prevent rotation of the core therein when so, assembled.

3,. A core adapted to ailord operative support to a spool having a bore partially of polygonal cross section, comprising a body, means adjacent one end of the body adapted by engagement with an end of the spool to prevent axial movement of the core therein in one direction, a plurality of circumferentially spaced resilient elements adjacent the other end of the body respectively adapted to yieldingly engage the spool to resist axial movement of the core therein in the opposite direction, and a polygonal flange carried by and radially projecting from the core body operative by engagement with the inner Wall of the polygonal portion of the spool bore to positively prevent rotation of the core in the spool when assembled therewith.

4. A core `adapted to afford operative support to a spool having a bore embodying a region of polygonal cross section, comprising a body having at one end a base plate adapted'to engage an end of the spool and form a partial closure for itsbore, a plurality of resilient elements circumferentially spaced.I about the body, each having an end normally out of contact therewith, means operative to maintain the other ends of the elements in iixed relation with the body and a radially projecting polygonal flange carried by the body adapted to engage the polygonal region of the bore of the spool to positively restrain kthe core from axial. rotation therein, said resilient elements being adapted to urge the spool against the base plate when the core is assembled in the spool. Y

vEARL G. CROOKS. 

